The invention relates generally to a tester for storage devices, and more specifically to a portable apparatus with self-contained test capability that is operable to test a disc drive.
Computer systems commonly utilize hard disc drives as a nonvolatile way to store data. A disc drive is favored for such tasks because it has a high capacity for data, is inexpensive relative to many other storage devices, and is relatively fast when compared to other large and inexpensive data storage devices (such as tape drives). Hard drives also are rewritablexe2x80x94data written to a hard drive may be overwritten or erased, unlike many competing data storage media such as Compact Disc-Recordable (CD-R) devices.
Disc drives usually include one or more discs that are rotated, an actuator that moves a transducer to various locations over the disc surface, and electronic circuitry that processes data to be written to the disc surface. The electrical circuitry also includes control circuitry that controls the operation of the disc drive, and passes information between the disc drive transducer and the computer.
The transducer is typically an electromagnetic transducer housed within a small ceramic block. The transducer assembly is passed over the disc as the disc rotates, and is actuated by magnetic patterns stored on the disc. The transducer assembly encounters high air speeds as a result of the spinning disc, and is typically aerodynamically designed so that it flies over the surface of a spinning disc. The distance between a transducer assembly and a spinning disc in operation can be very small, and currently is typically 1-2 microinches. Alternatively, the transducer assembly may pass through a layer of lubricant, traveling at a similar height over the disc surface.
Information representative of the stored data is encoded on the surface of the disc. The transducers, which incorporate read and write heads, read and write the stored information on the disc when the disc head is accurately positioned over a designated track area of the disc. As the disc spins, the transducer is moved to the correct track by a suspension mechanism that supports the transducer above the disc surface. The suspension mechanism also moves the transducer radially, between the inner and outer portions of the disc, to enable reading and writing to multiple tracks on the disc. Because the transducer must be accurately positioned in very close proximity to the disc to read or write information, much research is done on the characteristics of the transducer-disc interface.
The close tolerances necessary in production of state of the art disc drives contribute to occasional disc drive failure. These drive failures may be due to faulty components, to components or assembly that do not meet engineering specifications, or due to wear or other damage that occurs as a result of drive use or abuse. Because many of these failures occur in drives that have been shipped to customers, manufacturers of disc drives often receive shipments of drives suspected of failure from their customers that have been replaced under warranty with new disc drives.
But, because apparent drive failure may be the result of customer misconfiguration or incompatibility as well as actual drive failure, manufacturers of disc drives typically receive a substantial number of returned disc drives that do not have any evident hardware defect. Computer manufacturers usually do not have the capability to thoroughly test returned disc drives, and so replacement drives are shipped to the customer and the presumed defective drives are returned to the manufacturer. For every drive that is returned to the manufacturer that is not faulty, the disc drive manufacturer incurs the expense of providing a replacement drive to the customer via the computer manufacturer in addition to the expense associated with shipping and testing the presumed defective and replacement drives. But, because the equipment needed to thoroughly test disc drives is often specialized, expensive, and complex, it is not usually practical to provide such equipment to even the largest disc drive customers. Further, the equipment necessary to provide test capability for a varied product line of disc drives is often large and difficult to carry, making on-site testing of disc drives impractical
What is needed is a portable and inexpensive testing method and apparatus that will provide economical and efficient testing of returned disc drives so that only the truly defective drives are returned to the manufacturer.
The present invention provides a portable on-site tester, designed to test a disc drive at a location remote from the disc drive manufacturer. The tester performs tests essentially similar to those performed by the manufacturer, and so is capable of accurately diagnosing disc drive problems without requiring the return of suspected defective disc drives to the manufacturer. The tester supports multiple disc drive interfaces by supporting multiple drive initiator cards, one of which is selected for use at a time.
A tester is attached to a local computer, which controls operation of the tester. A tester interface comprises a part of the tester and is coupled to the local computer and to a selected drive initiator card. The proper drive initiator card is selected for connection to the tester interface such that the drive initiator card supports the disc drive interface format of the disc drive to be tested.
The tester may be configured to support a different disc drive interface by connecting various drive initiator cards to the tester. The drive initiator cards are mounted to one or more drive initiator card supports, which are oriented in the tester such that the selected drive initiator card is electrically connected to the tester.
Disc drives are tested by selecting a drive initiator card that supports the interface of the disc drive to be tested and connecting the selected drive initiator card to the tester. Then, the disc drive is connected to the drive initiator card, and the local computer provides instructions to the tester that control the tests and record the results. In some embodiments, the results of the tests are sent to a networked computer, such as a computer connected to the local computer via a modem connection.